Biocon
BSE: 532523 | NSE: BIOCON | ISIN: INE376G01013 | Pharmaceuticals
- Directors Report
- Chairman's Speech
- Auditors Report
- Notes To Accounts
- Accounting Policy
- Finished Products
- Raw Materials
| Chairman's Speech | Year : Mar '09 |
Dear Shareholders, 2009 is a special year as it heralds the advent of our fourth decade as a biotechnology pioneer and our second as a bio- pharmaceutical front runner. However, for world markets, it has been a year of tremendous upheaval, change and challenge. The global economic downturn has impacted corporate earnings in an unprecedented manner over the last fiscal. This has been further compounded by foreign currency volatility followed by a surging US Dollar which has led to export driven companies suffering large losses on account of foreign ex-change hedging. Biocons financial performance has been challenged with all these factors resulting in a sharp decline in post tax profits but redeemed by operating profits and margins that were sustained across Biocon and its subsidiary companies. Fiscal 2008-09 will go down as a year of learning and reckoning. This is the time to strongly leverage Indias affordability advantage and move up the value chain. Now more than ever, the most robust way to grow businesses and sustain a competitive edge is through innovation. I believe innovation empowers us with the flexibility to respond to changing situations and provides market leadership through proactive processes and products. Thus, in todays challenging environment, Biocon is developing new ways of delivering high value at low cost. Our partnered services are innovating and augmenting their talent pool to build specialized skills that can deliver higher value services in a cost-effective manner. As imitation of products leads to commoditization and diminishing returns, innovation holds the key to leadership and profitability. The Innovation Matrix: A Strategic Framework To navigate the challenges of innovation in the next decade we have adopted a well-defined strategic framework that will transform scientific discoveries into advances in human healthcare and generate incremental value for our shareholders. Our Innovation Matrix is a four-dimensional endeavour which extends into the realms of the known and the unknown. Creativity in the known realm builds on existing knowledge and can result in two types of innovation: INCREMENTAL and EVOLUTIONARY. Creativity that challenges unknown boundaries and creates new knowledge is EXPERIMENTAL and TRANSFORMATIONAL in its impact. A portfolio that covers all four spheres enables Biocon to sustain innovation in the short, medium and long term. Our biosimilar insulin, an outcome of incremental innovation, is one of the worlds most affordable therapies for insulin dependent diabetes. Bio-generic monoclonal antibodies are forming the core of our evolutionary innovation strategy. In the more challenging area of experimental innovation, Biocon is at the cutting edge. We are developing conjugated anti- bodies with a US Biotech start-up, lATRICa, to potentially deliver therapeutic cancer vaccines. We are also pursuing a path of breakthrough innovation through phase III human clinical trials to develop the worlds first Oral Insulin. Biocon is thus rapidly moving towards commercializing novel biologies with a Made in India label. Syngene Over the last 14 years Syngene has grown from strength to strength harnessing capabilities and expertise across multiple research areas to become Indias leading provider of drug discovery services. Today, Syngene offers an integrated discovery platform that opens up avenues for collaborative integrated drug development programs and partnerships. Our partnership with Innate to develop type II virulence blockers is in its third year and moving ahead with much success. We have also entered into an alliance with Sapient Discovery to provide a highly integrated platform for structure- based drug discovery. This partnership is crucial at a time when cost reductions and efficiency in the drug discovery process are driving companies to look for suitable outsourcing partners. On another front, we are now alliance partners with DuPont Crop Protection, a logical extension of being a service provider for over six years. Reporting on our significant partnership with Bristol-Myers Squibb, I am happy to announce that the new research and development facility dedicated to advancing BMSs research endeavours in new drug develop- ment was formally inaugurated on March 23, 2009. Clinigene With India emerging as a credible destination for conducting global clinical trials, Clinigene is poised for dynamic growth. Clinigene has demonstrated scientific expertise and operational excellence in executing the most challenging clinical studies. Our comprehensive database of healthy volunteers and GCP trained investigators drive high volume enrollment in reduced timelines and quality execution of all projects. Clinigenes Clinibase®, a database of investigators and investigation sites, provides speed and efficiency in clinical trials. Global Recognition & Awards I am proud to announce that our first innovative drug, BIOMAb EGFR® was voted Asia-Pacific Product of the Year 2008 by Bio-Spectrum, a pan-Asian biotech publication. Biocon also received the BioSingapore Asia-Pacific Biotechnology Award for The Best Listed Company of 2009. Confirming our position as an emerging global biotechnology player, Med Ad News ranked Biocon as the 20th leading biotechnology company in the world and the 7th largest global employer in the biotechnology sector. Increasing Our Global Footprint: AxiCorp & NeoBiocon It has been a year since the German company, AxiCorp came on board as Biocons subsidiary. During this short time, the Company has delivered 30% top line growth to Biocons consolidated numbers. I am pleased to announce that AxiCorp has recently won the German AOK (a leading Public Health Insurer) tender for Metformin, which is an important mile- stone both in terms of making inroads into the generics market as well as laying the foundation for our diabetes franchise in Germany. Creditably, in 2008, AxiCorp reached the Top 50 position in the German pharmaceutical market and is rated amongst the three fastest growing companies in Germany for Q4/2008. In October 2008, we took a giant step towards consolidating our presence in GCC markets. Our JV in Abu Dhabi, NeoBiocon launched Abraxane® in the UAE for the treatment of breast cancer. Abraxane® is now available as a single-use 100 mg vial (lyophilized powder, to be reconstituted for intravenous administration). Clinical Advisory Board It has been my constant endeavour to strengthen the leadership of our organization by engaging with international experts and consultants. To that end, we have recently constituted a Diabetes Clinical Advisory Board with the appointments of Prof. Alan D. Cherrington - PhD, Professor & Chairman of Molecular Physiology & Biophysics and Professor of Medicine & Diabetes Research Vanderbilt University - Past President of the American Diabetes Association; Dr. G. Alexander Fleming - MD, President and CEO of Kinexum LLC - Member of numerous Scientific Advisory Boards and expert committees; and Dr. Harold E Lebovitz- MD, FACE, Professor of Medicine, Endocrinology and Diabetes Division, State University of New York, Health Science Center, Brooklyn. It is envisaged that this Advisory Body will enable us to more effectively advance our diabetes pipeline into global, regulated markets such as the US and EU. Our Oral Insulin program is also being developed with the counsel of this Board. We are in the process of setting up similar disease domain specific global advisory boards for oncology and autoimmune diseases. Corporate Social Responsibility Biocon recognizes its significant responsibilities towards delivering better healthcare to the under-served communities of India, especially those in Karnataka. One of the most important initiatives undertaken this fiscal is the partnered program with the Government of Karnataka and The Embassy of Ireland to build 800 toilets for individual households in Huskur Gram Panchayat, Anekal. The Micro-Health Insurance initiative under the auspices of Arogya Raksha Yojana continues to increase enrollments and has expanded its network of clinics and hospitals. Biocon Foundation has also partnered the Jain Institute of Vascular Sciences in its Mobile Diabetic Foot Clinic which offers free detection and counseling services to diabetic patients in rural communities. The People of Biocon Biocon has exhibited a track record of consistency, perform- ance and responsibility. The people of Biocon know that to continue on this path we must maintain a relentless focus on improvement and operational efficiency. We are committed to acquiring new skills and new knowledge in order to succeed in the years ahead. At its core, this endeavour is designed to unleash the full potential of our rich talent pool and focus on delivering good returns on our investments. Looking to the Future Despite the globally challenging environment we operate in, I believe we are beginning to witness the start of a trans- formational phase for Biocons various businesses as we strengthen our competitive edge through innovation and differentiation. On the manufacturing front, our innovation efforts are increasingly directed towards delivering the highest quality at the lowest cost. On the services front, Syngene and Clinigene aim to compete by augmenting specialized skills to deliver increasingly higher value services in a cost effective manner. On the research front, we will pursue a strategy that will deliver incremental and transformational innovation in an affordable manner. Underlying these efforts will be an un- flinching commitment to operational excellence which is now a prerequisite for global competitiveness. I want to take this opportunity to thank the People of Biocon for making a difference, both to our Company and those we serve. Thanks to their efforts, our growth has accelerated, our research pipeline has become stronger and we are rapidly progressing along the path to delivering increasing shareholder value. Yours sincerely, Kiran May 2009 |
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| Source : Religare Technova | |
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